Rule to Speed Union Votes Moves Forward

NLRB Approves Scaled-Back Version Amid Dissent From Panel's Republican; Chairman Wants Issue Decided by Year End

By

Melanie Trottman

December 1, 2011

The National Labor Relations Board on Wednesday approved a scaled-back version of a proposal that would speed up union-organizing elections, in a vote marked by dissent from the board's lone Republican.

The approval of the rules clears the way for the board to draft a final federal rule that would usher in some of the most sweeping changes to the union-organizing election process since 1947. The vote was 2-1, with the board's two...